Tectonic/volcanic segmentation and controls on hydrothermal venting along Earth's fastest seafloor spreading system, EPR 27°-32°S

Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems

Volumn 5, Issue 12, 2004, Pages

  Hey, Richard ^a   Baker, Edward ^b   Bohnenstiehl, Delwayne ^c   Massoth, Gary ^d   Kleinrock, Martin ^e   Martinez, Fernando ^a   Naar, David ^f   Pardee, Debra ^a,g   Lupton, John ^b   Feely, Richard ^b   Gharib, Jim ^a   Resing, Joe ^b,h   Rodrigo, Cristian ⁱ   Sansone, Francis ^a   Walker, Sharon ^b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII   (United States)

^b NOAA PACIFIC MARINE ENVIRONMENTAL LABORATORY   (United States)

^c Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences   (United States)

^d GNS SCIENCE   (New Zealand)

^e Research and Education   (United States)

^f UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA   (United States)

^g URS CORPORATION   (United States)

^h UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON   (United States)

ⁱ Dirección de Programas Investigación y Desarrollo de la Armada de Chile   (Chile)

Author keywords

Hydrothermal plumes; Mid ocean ridges; Seafloor spreading

Indexed keywords

EID: 30644472720     PISSN: 15252027     EISSN: 15252027     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1029/2004GC000764     Document Type: Article

References (83)

1. Anderson-Fontana, S., J. F. Engeln, P. Lundgren, R. L. Larson, and S. Stein (1986), Tectonics and evolution of the Juan Fernandez microplate at the Pacific-Nazca-Antarctic triple junction, J. Geophys. Res., 91, 2005-2018.
2. Baker, E. T., and T. Urabe (1996), Extensive distribution of hydrothermal plumes along the superfast-spreading East Pacific Rise, 13°50′- 18°40′S, J. Geophys. Res., 101, 8685-8695.
3. Baker, E. T., Y. J. Chen, and J. Phipps Morgan (1996), The relationship between near-axis hydrothermal cooling and the spreading rate of midocean ridges, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 142, 137-145.
4. Baker, E. T., D. A. Tennant, R. A. Feely, G. T. Lebon, and S. L. Walker (2001), Field and laboratory studies on the effect of particle size and composition on optical backscattering measurements in hydrothermal plumes, Deep Sea Res., Part I, 48, 593-604.
5. Baker, E. T., et al. (2002), Hydrothermal venting along Earth's fastest spreading center: East Pacific Rise, 27.5°-32.3°, J. Geophys. Res., 107(B7), 2130, doi:10.1029/2001JB000651.
6. Batiza, R. (1996), Magmatic segmentation of mid-ocean ridges: A review, in Tectonic, Magmatic, Hydrothermal and Biological Segmentation of Mid-Ocean Ridges, edited by C. J. MacLeod, P. A. Tyler, and C. L. Walker, Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ., 118, 103-130.
7. Batiza, R., and S. H. Margolis (1986), Small non-overlapping offsets of the East Pacific Rise, Nature, 320, 439-441.
8. Bird, R. T., and D. F. Naar (1994), Intratransform origins of mid-ocean ridge microplates, Geology, 22, 987-990.
9. Bird, R. T., D. F. Naar, R. L. Larson, R. C. Searle, and C. R. Scotese (1998), Plate tectonic reconstructions of the Juan Fernandez microplate: Transformation from internal shear to rigid rotation, J. Geophys. Res., 103, 7049-7067.
10. Bohnenstiehl, D. R., and S. M. Carbotte (2001), Faulting patterns near 19°30′S on the East Pacific Rise: Fault formation and growth at a superfast spreading center, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 2, doi:10.1029/ 2001GC000156.
11. Bohnenstiehl, D. R., and M. C. Kleinrock (1999), Faulting and fault scaling on the median valley floor of the TAG segment, 26°N, Mid-Atlantic Ridge, J. Geophys. Res., 104, 29,351-29,364.
12. Carbotte, S. M., W. B. F. Ryan, W. Jin, M. Cormier, E. Bergmanis, J. Sinton, and S. White (2003), Magmatic subsidence of the East Pacific Rise (EPR) at 18°14′S revealed through fault restoration of ridge crest bathymetry, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 4, 1008, doi:10.1029/2002GC000337.
13. Chadwick, W. W. Jr., D. S. Scheirer, R. W. Embley, and H. P. Johnson (2001), High-resolution bathymetric surveys using scanning sonars: Lava flow morphology, hydrothermal vent and geologic structure at recent eruption sites on the Juan de Fuca Ridge, J. Geophys. Res., 106, 16075-16100.
14. Cormier, M.-H., and K. C. Macdonald (1994), East Pacific Rise 18°S-19°S: Asymmetric spreading and ridge reorientation by ultra-fast migration of ridge axis discontinuities, J. Geophys. Res., 99, 543-564.
15. Cormier, M.-H., W. B. F. Ryan, A. K. Shah, W. Jin, A. M. Bradley, and D. R. Yoerger (2003), Waxing and waning volcanism along the East Pacific Rise on the millennium time scale, Geology, 31, 633-636.
16. DeMets, C., R. G. Gordon, D. F. Argus, and S. Stein (1990), Current plate motions, Geophys. J. Int., 101, 425-478.
17. DeMets, C., R. G. Gordon, D. F. Argus, and S. Stein (1994), Effect of recent revisions to the geomagnetic reversal time scale on estimates of current plate motions, Geophys. Res. Lett., 21, 2191-2194.
18. Edwards, M. H., D. J. Fornari, A. Malinverno, W. B. F. Ryan, and J. Madsen (1991), The regional tectonic fabric of the East Pacific Rise from 12°50′N to 15°10′N, J. Geophys. Res., 96, 7995-8017.
19. Engels, J. L., M. H. Edwards, D. J. Fornari, M. R. Perfit, and J. R. Cann (2003), A new model for submarine volcanic collapse formation, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 4, 1077, doi:10.1029/2002GC000483.
20. Fornari, D. J., and R. W. Embley (1995), Tectonic and volcanic controls on hydrothermal processes at the mid-ocean ridge: An overview based on near-bottom and submersible studies, in Physical, Chemical, Biological, and Geological Interactions within Seafloor Hydrothermal Systems, Geophys. Monogr. Ser., vol.91, edited by S. E. Humphris et al., pp. 1-46, AGU, Washington, D. C.
21. Fornari, D. J., R. M. Haymon, M. R. Perfit, T. K. P. Gregg, and M. H. Edwards (1998), Axial summit trough of the East Pacific Rise 9°-10°N: Geological characteristics and evolution of the axial zone on fast spreading mid-ocean ridges, J. Geophys. Res., 103, 9827-9855.
22. Fornari, D., et al. (2004), Submarine lava flow emplacement at the East Pacific Rise 9°50′N: Implications for uppermost ocean crust stratigraphy and hydrothermal fluid circulation, in Mid-Ocean Ridges: Hydrothermal Interactions Between the Lithosphere and Oceans, Geophys. Monogr. Ser., AGU, Washington, D. C., in press.
23. Forsyth, D. W. (1992), Geophysical constraints on mantle flow and melt generation beneath mid-ocean ridges, in Mantle Flow and Melt Generation at Mid-Ocean Ridges, Geophys. Monogr. Ser., vol.71, edited by J. Phipps Morgan, D. K. Blackman, and J. M. Sinton, pp. 1-65, AGU, Washington, D. C.
24. Fox, P. J., and D. G. Gallo (1984), A tectonic model for ridge-transform-ridge plate boundaries: Implications for the structure of oceanic lithosphere, Tectonophysics, 104, 205-242.
25. German, C. R., L. M. Parson, and the HEAT Scientific Team (1996), Hydrothermal exploration near the Azores triple junction: Tectonic control of venting at slow spreading ridges?, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 138, 93-104.
26. Gregg, T. K., and D. J. Fornari (1998), Long submarine lava flows: Observations and results from numerical modeling, J. Geophys. Res., 103, 27,517-27,531.
27. Griffiths, R. W., and J. H. Fink (1992), Solidification and morphology of submarine lavas: A dependence on extrusion rate, J. Geophys. Res., 97, 19,729-19,737.
28. Hanan, B. B., and J. G. Schilling (1989), Easter microplate evolution: Pb isotope evidence, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 7432-7448.
29. Haymon, R. M. (1996), The response of ridge-crest hydrothermal systems to segmented, episodic magma supply, in Tectonic, Magmatic, Hydrothermal and Biological Segmentation of Mid-Ocean Ridges, edited by C. J. MacLeod, P. A. Tyler, and C. L. Walker, Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ., 118, 157-168.
30. Haymon, R. M., D. J. Fornari, M. H. Edwards, S. Carbotte, D. Wright, and K. C. Macdonald (1991), Hydrothermal vent distribution along the East Pacific Rise crest (9°09′-54′N) and its relationship to magmatic and tectonic processes on fast-spreading mid-ocean ridges, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 104, 513-534.
31. Haymon, R. M., et al. (1993), Volcanic eruption of the mid-ocean ridge along the East Pacific Rise at 9°45-52′N: Direct submersible observation of seafloor phenomena associated with an eruption event in April, 1991, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 119, 85-101.
32. Hey, R. N. (1977), A new class of pseudofaults and their bearing on plate tectonics: A propagating rift model, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 37, 321-325.
33. Hey, R. N., F. K. Duennebier, and W. J. Morgan (1980), Propagating rifts on mid-ocean ridges, J. Geophys. Res., 85, 3647-3658.
34. Hey, R. N., D. F. Naar, M. C. Kleinrock, W. J. Phipps Morgan, E. Morales, and J. G. Schilling (1985), Microplate tectonics along a superfast seafloor spreading system near Easter Island, Nature, 317, 320-325.
35. Hey, R. N., M. C. Kleinrock, S. P. Miller, T. M. Atwater, and R. C. Searle (1986), Sea Beam/Deep-Tow investigation of an active oceanic propagating rift system, J. Geophys. Res., 91, 3369-3393.
36. Hey, R. N., P. D. Johnson, F. Martinez, J. Korenaga, M. L. Somers, Q. J. Huggett, T. P. LeBas, R. I. Rusby, and D. F. Naar (1995), Plate boundary reorganization at a large-offset, rapidly propagating rift, Nature, 378, 167-170.
37. Hilgen, F. J. (1991), Astronomical calibration of Gauss to Matuyama sapropels in the Mediterranean and implication for the geomagnetic polarity time scale, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 104, 226-244.
38. Hooft, E. E. E., R. S. Detrick, and G. M. Kent (1997), Seismic structure and indicators of magma budget along the southern East Pacific Rise, J. Geophys. Res., 102, 27,319-27,340.
39. Johnson, P. J. (1996), Recent structural evolution of the East Pacific Rise 29°S large-scale dueling propagator system, M.S. thesis, Univ. of Ha. at Manoa, Honolulu.
40. Klaus, A., W. Icay, D. F. Naar, and R. N. Hey (1991), Sea-MARC II survey of a propagating limb of a large non-transform offset near 29°S along the fastest spreading East Pacific Rise segment, J. Geophys. Res., 96, 9985-9998.
41. Kleinrock, M. C., R. C. Searle, and R. N. Hey (1989), Tectonics of the failing spreading system associated with the 95.5°W Galapagos propagator, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 13,839-13,858.
42. Korenaga, J., and R. N. Hey (1996), Recent dueling propagation history at the fastest spreading center, the East Pacific Rise, 26°-32°S, J. Geophys. Res., 101, 18,023-18,041.
43. Langmuir, C. H., J. F. Bender, and R. Batiza (1986), Petrologic and tectonic segmentation of the East Pacific Rise, 5°30′- 14°30′N, Nature, 322, 422-429.
44. Larson, R. L., R. C. Searle, M. C. Kleinrock, H. Schouten, R. T. Bird, D. F. Naar, R. I. Rusby, E. E. Hooft, and H. Lasthiotakis (1992), Roller-bearing tectonic evolution of the Juan Fernandez microplate, Nature, 356, 571-576.
45. Lonsdale, P. (1983), Overlapping rift zones at the 5.5°S offset of the East Pacific Rise, J. Geophys. Res., 88, 9393-9406.
46. Lonsdale, P. (1989), Segmentation of the Pacific-Nazca spreading center, 1°N-20°S, J. Geophys. Res., 94, 12,197-12,225.
47. Lupton, J., D. Butterfield, M. Lilley, J. Ishibashi, D. Hey, and L. Evans (1999), Gas chemistry of hydrothermal fluids along the East Pacific Rise, 5°S to 32°S (abstract), Eos Trans. AGU, 80(46), Fall Meet. Suppl., F1099.
48. Macdonald, K. C., and P. J. Fox (1983), Overlapping spreading centers: New accretion geometry of the East Pacific Rise, Nature, 301, 55-58.
49. Macdonald, K. C., and P. J. Fox (1988), The axial summit graben and cross-sectional shape of the East Pacific Rise as indicators of axial magma chambers and recent volcanic eruptions, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 88, 119-131.
50. Macdonald, K. C., J. C. Sempere, P. J. Fox, and R. Tyce (1987), Tectonic evolution of ridge axis discontinuities by the meeting, linking, or self-decapitation of neighboring ridge segments, Geology, 15, 993-997.
51. Macdonald, K. C., R. M. Haymon, S. P. Miller, J.-C. Sempere, and P. J. Fox (1988a), Deep-Tow and Sea Beam studies of dueling propagating ridges on the East Pacific Rise near 20°40′S, J. Geophys. Res., 93, 2875-2898.
52. Macdonald, K. C., P. J. Fox, L. J. Perram, M. F. Eisen, R. M. Haymon, S. P. Miller, S. M. Carbotte, M.-H. Cormier, and A. N. Shor (1988b), A new view of the mid-ocean ridge from the behavior of ridge-axis discontinuities, Nature, 335, 217-225.
53. Macdonald, K. C., D. S. Scheirer, and S. M. Carbotte (1991), Mid-ocean ridges: Discontinuities, segments and giant cracks, Science, 253, 986-994.
54. Martinez, F., R. N. Hey, and P. D. Johnson (1997), The East ridge system 28.5-32°S East Pacific Rise: Implications for overlapping spreading center development, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 151, 13-31.
55. Massoth, G. J., E. T. Baker, R. A. Feely, J. E. Lupton, R. W. Collier, J. F. Gendron, K. K. Roe, S. M. Maenner, and J. A. Resing (1998), Manganese and iron in hydrothermal plumes resulting from the 1996 Gorda Ridge Event, Deep Sea Res., Part II, 45, 2683-2712.
56. Montelli, R., G. Nolet, F. A. Dahlen, G. Masters, E. R. Engdahl, and S.-H. Hung (2004), Finite frequency tomography reveals a variety of plumes in the mantle, Science, 303, 338-343.
57. Naar, D. F., and R. N. Hey (1986), Fast rift propagation along the East Pacific Rise near Easter Island, J. Geophys. Res., 91, 3425-3438.
58. Naar, D. F., and R. N. Hey (1989a), Speed limit for oceanic transform faults, Geology, 17, 420-422.
59. Naar, D. F., and R. N. Hey (1989b), Recent Pacific-Easter-Nazca plate motions, in Evolution of Mid-Oceanic Ridges, Geophys. Monogr. Ser., vol.57, pp. 9-30, AGU, Washington, D. C.
60. Naar, D. F., and R. N. Hey (1991), Tectonic evolution of the Easter Microplate, J. Geophys. Res., 96, 7961-7993.
61. Pardee, D. R., R. N. Hey, and F. Martinez (2000), Cross-sectional areas of mid-ocean ridge axes bounding the Easter and Juan Fernandez Microplates, Mar. Geophys. Res., 20, 517-531.
62. Phipps Morgan, J., and E. M. Parmentier (1985), Causes and rate-limiting mechanisms of ridge propagation: A fracture mechanics model, J. Geophys. Res., 90, 8603-8612.
63. Pollard, D. D., and A. Aydin (1984), Propagation and linkage of oceanic ridge segments, J. Geophys. Res., 89, 10,017-10,028.
64. Poreda, R. J., J.-G. Schilling, and H. Craig (1993), Helium isotope ratios in Easter microplate basalts, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 119, 319-329.
65. Rusby, R. I., and R. C. Searle (1995), A history of the Easter Microplate, 5.25 Ma to present, J. Geophys. Res., 100, 12,617-12,640.
66. Scheirer, D. S., and K. C. Macdonald (1993), Variation in cross-sectional area of the axial ridge along the East Pacific Rise: Evidence for the magmatic budget of a fast-spreading center, J. Geophys. Res., 98, 7871-7885.
67. Scheirer, D. S., D. J. Fornari, S. E. Humphris, and S. Lerner (2000), High-resolution seafloor mapping using the DSL-120 sonar system: Quantitative assessment of sidescan and phase-bathymetry data from the Lucky Strike segment of the Mid-Atlantic ridge, Mar. Geophys. Res., 21, 121-142.
68. Schilling, J. G., H. Sigurdsson, A. Davis, and R. N. Hey (1985), Easter microplate evolution, Nature, 317, 325-331.
69. Searle, R. C. (1983), Multiple, closely spaced transform faults in fast-slipping fracture zones, Geology, 11, 607-610.
70. Searle, R. C., R. I. Rusby, J. Engeln, R. N. Hey, J. Zukin, P. M. Hunter, T. P. LeBas, H.-J. Hoffman, and R. Livermore (1989), Comprehensive sonar imaging of the Easter microplate, Nature, 341, 701-705.
71. Sempere, J. C., and K. C. Macdonald (1986), Overlapping spreading centers: Implications from crack growth simulation by the displacement discontinuity method, Tectonics, 5, 151-163.
72. Shackleton, N. J., A. Berger, and W. R. Peltier (1990), An alternative astronomical calibration of the lower Pleistocene timescale based on ODP site 677, Trans. R. Soc. Edinburgh Earth Sci., 81, 251-261.
73. Stewart, W. K., D. Chu, S. Malik, S. Lerner, and H. Singh (1994), Quantitative seafloor characterization using a bathymetric sidescan sonar, IEEE J. Oceanic Eng., 19, 599-610.
74. Walker, S. L., E. T. Baker, G. Massoth, and R. N. Hey (2004), Short-term variations in the distribution of hydrothermal plumes along a superfast spreading center, East Pacific Rise, 27°30′-32°20′S, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 5, Q12005, doi:10.1029/2004GC000789.
75. Wetzel, L. R., D. A. Wiens, and M. C. Kleinrock (1993), Evidence from earthquakes for bookshelf faulting at large non-transform ridge offsets, Nature, 362, 235-237.
76. White, S. M., K. C. Macdonald, and R. M. Haymon (2000), Basaltic lava domes, lava lakes, and volcanic segmentation on the southern East Pacific Rise, J. Geophys. Res., 105, 23,519-23,536.
77. White, S. M., R. M. Haymon, D. J. Fornari, M. R. Perfit, and K. C. Macdonald (2002a), Correlation between volcanic and tectonic segmentation of fast-spreading ridges: Evidence from volcanic structures and lava flow morphology on the East Pacific Rise at 9°-10°N, J. Geophys. Res., 107(B8), 2173, doi:10.1029/2001JB000571.
78. White, S. M., K. C. Macdonald, and J. M. Sinton (2002b), Volcanic mound fields on the East Pacific Rise, 16°-19°S: Low effusion rate eruptions at overlapping spreading centers for the past 1 Myr, J. Geophys. Res., 107(B10), 2240, doi:10.1029/2001JB000483.
79. Wilson, D. S. (1996), Fastest known spreading on the Miocene Cocos-Pacific plate boundary, Geophys. Res. Lett., 23, 3003-3006.
80. Won, Y., C. R. Young, R. A. Lutz, and R. C. Vrijenhoek (2003), Dispersal barriers and isolation among deep-sea mussel populations (Mytilidae: Bathymodiolus) from eastern Pacific hydrothermal vents, Mol. Ecol., 12, 169-184.
81. Wright, D. J., R. M. Haymon, and D. J. Fornari (1995a), Crustal fissuring and its relationship to magmatic and hydrothermal processes on the East Pacific Rise crest (9°12′-54′N), J. Geophys. Res., 100, 6097-6120.
82. Wright, D. J., R. M. Haymon, and K. C. Macdonald (1995b), Breaking new ground: Estimates of crack depth along the axial zone of the East Pacific Rise (9°12-54′N), Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 134, 441-457.
83. Wright, D. J., R. M. Haymon, S. M. White, and K. C. Macdonald (2002), Crustal fissuring on the crest of the southern East Pacific Rise at 17°15′-40′S, J. Geophys. Res., 107(B5), 2104, doi:10.1029/2001JB000544.